LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The act of Congress is in the books, the bills are paid, the sculptures are being cast, and one of the biggest parades in the world will start a glory tour and countdown to dedication.

The first national monument to pay tribute to military dogs will be unveiled in California in just two months. The U.S. Working Dog Teams National Monument will honour every dog that has served in combat since World War II.

Some cities, cemeteries and military bases across the country already have such memorials. But none has been elevated to national monument level, where it will be in the company of the Statue of Liberty,Yosemite National Park and Mount Rushmore National Memorial.

In 2000, John Burnam, a 65-year-old veteran military dog handler, wrote a book called “Dog Tags of Courage.” A year later, he got an email from a reader wondering why there were no national monuments to the dogs of war.

In “Dog Tags” and a 2008 book, “A Soldier’s Best Friend,” Burnam wrote about his time with the Army’s 44th Scout Dog Platoon when he was in Vietnam in 1967 and 1968.

His first dog, Timber, was injured in an ambush a few months after they teamed up, so he spent most of his tour with a German shepherd named Clipper.

“He saved my life and saved the lives of others by alerting on ambushes, snipers and booby traps. I wanted to give something back to these animals that have done so much and asked for so little, except for food and water and the love of their handlers,” said Burnam, who received the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

Back then, handlers were not able to adopt their dogs when they were retired.

“I always worried about them but I know they died over there and they died as heroes,” he said.

In 2004, Burnam and two other dog handler veterans pursued the idea in earnest, forming the John Burnam Monument Foundation Inc. But it took two more years, until he met Rep. Walter B. Jones, R-N.C., that the monument project started to take shape.

In 2007, Jones introduced legislation authorizing establishment of the monument. Passed unanimously by Congress, it was signed the next year by President George W. Bush, then amended and signed by President Barack Obama.

Burnam designed the monument, which depicts the modern military handler and four dogs — a Doberman, German shepherd, Labrador retriever and Belgian Malinois, all breeds used in wars.

The silicon bronze handler stands more than 9 feet tall and weighs 1,500 pounds. Each dog is about 5 feet tall and weighs 550 pounds. Burnam called them “hero-sized.”

The figures will stand on a pedestal, in front of a large granite wall. One side of the wall will have photos etched in black marble veneer showing dog teams in combat from the different wars. The other side will have an inscription written by Burnam.

The sculptor, Paula Slater, said it was the largest and most complex monument she had ever done. She worked for thousands of hours, saying that finishing a project of that size “is like giving birth to a baby — five of them.”

The money for the monument came slowly. Burnam made one of many fundraising pitches on the reality TV show “Who Let the Dogs Out,” featuring Tillman, the skateboarding, surfing and snowboarding bulldog. The president of New Balance Pet Foods Inc., the company that Tillman represents, attended the show taping and volunteered to pitch in more than $1 million.

“Don’t do a thing. Natural Balance and Petco (Animal Supplies Inc.) will take care of it,” Joey Herrick said. To raise funds for the monument and its maintenance, Natural Balance created a jerky bark treat sold by Petco. Maddie’s Fund, a family-funded pet rescue foundation, also signed on as a corporate sponsor.

The public will get a sneak peak of the monument at the Tournament of Roses parade in Pasadena on Jan. 1, when a floral replica will be used as Natural Balance’s float. Burnam, dogs and handlers from every military service branch will ride on it.

When the float goes on display afterward at Victory Park, the real bronze monument will make its public debut next to it, Herrick said. Then the bronze monument will go on tour as it heads to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio. The location was chosen as the site for the monument because that’s where most of the nation’s military’s dogs are trained.

Meanwhile, Tillman, the dog that helped get Burnam the monument funding, is also getting personal recognition for his military service. For his work entertaining troops at bases and for going through a mini Marine boot camp, the athletic bulldog has been made an honorary private 1st class.

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We're not easily offended and don't want people to think they have to walk on eggshells around here (like at another place that shall remain nameless) but of course, there is a limit to everything.

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Today, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid pledged to stonewall any attempt by Mitt Romney to pass his agenda if elected. “Mitt Romney’s fantasy that Senate Democrats will work with him to pass his ‘severely conservative’ agenda is laughable,” spat Reid. Of course, when Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) suggested two years into President Obama’s presidency (after the stimulus package and Obamacare) that Obama’s failures to lead in bipartisan fashion made his defeat his first political priority, the left went insane; they still cite the line as evidence that McConnell wouldn’t let Obama get anything done. But Reid is doing it before Romney even takes office.

We need to take the Senate as well as the Presidency if we want to save this country. The Democrats are trying to destroy us. The last four years should have made that clear. FOr the last two years Reid has blocked Any kind of budget for America, preferring to have Obama blow an extra trillion dollars a year to put us far enough in debt that we are in the shape of Greece except without anyone to bail us out. This is their tactic. It is not some accident, mistake, or the act of well-meaning fools. They intend to destroy us.

A further note: Reid wouldn’t be saying this if he thought Obama was going to win. There’d be no point in it. The only reason to say this is if he is greatly concerned that Obama is going to lose. The confident/wise response would have been “I’m not worried about it” when asked if he could work with Romney.

@ 3 Storagemanager: That question needs to be shouted out more. It is interesting how the media is very interested in a sensitive social consciousness when it comes to a killer storm. And is insensitive to killer muslims. It suggests to me that they aren’t really sensitive to death at all, but are trying to hide their personal vacant characters behind the deaths of a few innocents.

The storm is a chance for them to project the lie that they are good people via their concerns for life.

About 2,500 people waited up to 90 minutes to get into the rally, with hundreds more in an outside holding area.

We’ll see if these numbers turn into winning numbers of votes. Romney is drawing big crowds, though. I think we’ll win Wisconsin. Had Scott Walker lost, I would put Wisconsin out of reach, but Walker won. Kleefisch won. We won the Senate re-call elections (except for one), and the Supreme Court election. I think Wisconsin will fall to Romney next Tuesday, and with it the Presidency. Polls show it tied, and I think most of the ties will go to the challenger. People who are undecided at this stage will either vote for Romney or they will stay home. They’ve already decided against Obama.

I don’ tknow. The Democrats are all kinds of dumb. They made Nancy Pelosie Minority Leader after they got kicked out of the House. I could easily see them keeping Reid on as Minority Leader if they lose the Senate and White House. Maybe not if they lose both, though. If they wind up losing the House, Senate, and White House, maybe they’ll see it as the big rejection that they have gotten from the public and change their tune. I doubt it, though. I could see them filibustering the next budget if that happens. We’ll need to be able to peel some Democrats off to get anything done in the Senate.

No, if you asked me my gut feeling on this, I’d say we have th ePresidency won. I am somewhat concerned about voter fraud, but I don’t think they can steal three states. Obama has to win Wisconsin, Ohio, and Pennsylvania to win th ePresidency, and I don’t see him being able to pull that off. I think he’ll get one of the three (most likely Pennsylvania), but I don’t think he’ll get all three. That said, I am going to be nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs until we get the definitive answer on the sixth or seventh.

I don’ tknow if we’ll get the Senate, though. I think that is going to depend on Romney’s margin of victory. If he wins big enough, we’ll win the Senate. If he squeaks through with 270 Electoral Votes, we probably won’t. That’s my gut feel for the race. I think it is pretty much set in stone now, though. I don’t think there is much that either candidate could do now to affect the race one way or another. Benghazi isn’t going to blow up until after the election, and Romney isn’t going to make a career-ending gaffe.

I don’t think there is much that either candidate could do now to affect the race one way or another. Benghazi isn’t going to blow up until after the election, and Romney isn’t going to make a career-ending gaffe.

while drivers are freaking out trying to find gas around NYC, the gas is there but the electricity is not…meanwhile Bloomberg is sitting on three huge generators, waiting for the marathon…you think NY’s are gonna forget that?…there is so much wrong with this whole storm

In total, since 2008 in these 8 states:
Independent registration has increased 969,589, or 14.4%, and now stands at 7,697,565;
Republican registration has increased by 158,037, or 1.3%, and now stands at 12,047,112; and,
Democratic registration has decreased by 372,827, or 2.5%, and now stands at 14,723,535.

Democratic registration was down over 800,000 in our August voter registration report. Since then, Democrats have added 427,502 to the voter rolls just in these 8 states.

In 6 states—Colorado, Florida, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania—Independent registration has grown faster than either Democratic or Republican registration. In Iowa, Republicans gained while Democrats and, to a lesser extent, Independents fell. In New Hampshire, voter registration fell across the board, but Republicans shed the fewest voters. And in 5 states—Colorado, Florida, Nevada, New Mexico, and North Carolina—Independent registration increased by double digits, the largest a gain of 25.2% in Colorado and the smallest 19.5% in Nevada.

This is =from a Liberal group, Third Way. There is a graph at Hot Air. Notice that Pennsylvania has lost 5% of her Democrats. That makes a big difference when you have polls using D+13 for Pennsylvania. And notice the jump in independents. Every poll, including PPP, shows Romney with significant leads among independents. IF there are a lot more of them this time around, they could be an even bigger slice of the pie, and if they break heavily for Romney, that plus an actual break of only D+1 or D+2 could be the difference between winning and winning big. All the pieces are there indicating that Romney will win, though I am not confident of a landslide like Dick Morris.

Yeah, and the leaders of the group probably know that. Back during the Clinton Administration they often quoted or paraphrased Mussolini on individual rights. Maybe they didn’t realize that they were quoting fascist doctrine, but I’ve read Mussolini, and it stood out like a sore thumb to me.

@ Guggi:
years ago I had a male Husky/Malamute pup who died from pneumonia…later I was driving through FT Custer (MI)looked over and saw the state police training dogs…there were quite a few locals watching…I was dumbfounded when I saw these dogs climbing fences, going up and over 8-10ft wooden walls, attacking foes etc….in one exercise where a man went down and another flew to protect it…I immediately went out and found the highest quality German Shepherd I could find….he lived 16yrs and was the finest animal God ever made…just unbelievably smart and loyal

Ties usually go to the challenger, but this points to something I’ve been saying: this is a turnout election. It is in converting likely voters to actual voters that this campaign will be won or lost. Romney apparently has a good ground game going in early voting in Ohio, and the word I am getting from people that I know in the State is universally positive. We’ll know in less than five days, I assume. Rasmussen also thinks that Wisconsin, not Ohio, will be the pivotal State this time around, and Wisconsin will fall to Romney. It is tied in the polls, but the same electoral machine that won the last four elections will win next Tuesday. Remember, none of these telephone polls decide anything. The poll next Tuesday is really the only one that matters.

Oh, and it’s too late for Obama to build any momentum. All he can do at this stage is try to blunt Romney’s momentum. How successful he’ll be at that is anybody’s guess, but he doesn’t appear to have done much over the last couple of weeks to do it. You can’t really take a one point fluctuation in a poll with a 3% margin of error as dispositive of anything. It is just bouncing around in the margin of error. Again, basic statistics.

liberals cannot defeat conservatives at the polls, impossible if they get off their ass and vote…that’s why Fists enthusiasm is growing on me…the two party system works best when the independent numbers are large….ironically, partisanship hurts everybody….the broadest color in the spectrum is the purple in the middle

I’ll only believe that if Romney somehow manages to win New York, but if it were even in play Romney would be winning in a landslide. If Obama has to fight for New York, he’s going to lose Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Ohio.

@ Rodan:
I don’t think Obama did enough to stop the hurricane. He could at least have sent the secret service led by Kanye West to stop the weather machines run by George Bush and Dick Cheney. They must still be operating them.

@ ferb123:
Ties usually go to the challenger, but this points to something I’ve been saying: this is a turnout election. It is in converting likely voters to actual voters that this campaign will be won or lost. Romney apparently has a good ground game going in early voting in Ohio, and the word I am getting from people that I know in the State is universally positive. We’ll know in less than five days, I assume. Rasmussen also thinks that Wisconsin, not Ohio, will be the pivotal State this time around, and Wisconsin will fall to Romney. It is tied in the polls, but the same electoral machine that won the last four elections will win next Tuesday. Remember, none of these telephone polls decide anything. The poll next Tuesday is really the only one that matters.

My father loved German shepards and trained them as rescue dogs in the mountains but his absolute favorite was a shepard crossbreed whom he saved from being euthanized because the dog was so dangerous. The dog was the most intelligent and loyal dog he ever had. He told incredible stories about this dog and how they rescued people in the mountains.

Alabama crews are denying that the unions wouldn’t let them help with the hurricane damage:

NEW YORK Alabama power companies are denying a local TV station’s report that linemen who had traveled to New Jersey from Alabama (a right to work state) to help restore power to those hit hard by Superstorm Sandy were told they could not work there because they were non-union.

The report by WAFF TV quotes a worker from Decatur Utilities saying he was told by crews in New Jersey they could not work there, after the utility receiving a call to assist in Seaside Heights, N.J.

The Decatur employee told WAFF that crews were told to stand down, and that linemen from Trinity, Ala.-based Joe Wheeler are already headed back home. Moore said they are frustrated being told, “Thanks, but no thanks.”

However, Decatur Utilities, based in Decatur, Ala., denied the report.

A misunderstanding? The unions have to understand how bad that would look.

As I’ve repeatedly told you, if Obama wins Ohio, it is not all over. Obama has to win Ohio, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania to win. Has to. He can’t afford to lose one of those states. But all of the polls I’ve seen that are credible on Ohio show it statistically tied. Really, you need to take a statistics class. Up by one or two points doesn’t mean you are winning if the margin of error is 3 points. The way some of these polls cook the books is in manipulating the margin of error. I’ve seen polls this election cycle showing Obama up by 8, but with a 10% margin of error. That high a margin of error means the whole poll is essentially worthless, but it made Obama look good. I think you are going to be sorely disappointed in our election Tuesday. Romney is goig to win. The only real question is how big a win it is going to be.

With much of the NY/NJ in tatters, the economy in crisis, tens of millions of people without work and without any hope of that changing, lives permanently ruined and four years of presidential incompetence, at home and abroad, this man actually has the temerity to say “voting is the best revenge”.

The sombitch can’t even bring himself to exact revenge on the perpetrators of the Libyan atrocity, yet he preaches revenge on Romney?!

@ MacDuff:
I hear you…I am usually pretty ambivalent toward pols and elections…but this time I feel my sensibilities are being insulted…I can tolerate a lot of bullshit but BO has taxed me dry…I really despise this asshole…he’s not just ideologically wrong, he’s aggressively malicious about it

Not a problem. It is something I love to do. I’ve got a degree in political science that makes meno money, but it does give me the background to realize when someone is trying to pull something on me. I’ve had the statistics and polling classe. Doing honest polls is hard. OTOH, it is easy to do a poll to get you a pre-determined answer. There’s all kinds of ways to skew a poll while still being “valid” enough to fool people that don’t look at your methodology and questions.

People are getting more angry….this is just going to go downhill as each day passes. Where is the outrage from the media about what is going on? Like the outrage against Bush concerning Katrina. People should have food to at least last a few days.

@ ferb123:
As I’ve repeatedly told you, if Obama wins Ohio, it is not all over. Obama has to win Ohio, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania to win. Has to. He can’t afford to lose one of those states. But all of the polls I’ve seen that are credible on Ohio show it statistically tied. Really, you need to take a statistics class. Up by one or two points doesn’t mean you are winning if the margin of error is 3 points. The way some of these polls cook the books is in manipulating the margin of error. I’ve seen polls this election cycle showing Obama up by 8, but with a 10% margin of error. That high a margin of error means the whole poll is essentially worthless, but it made Obama look good. I think you are going to be sorely disappointed in our election Tuesday. Romney is goig to win. The only real question is how big a win it is going to be.

@ 3 Storagemanager: That question needs to be shouted out more. It is interesting how the media is very interested in a sensitive social consciousness when it comes to a killer storm. And is insensitive to killer muslims. It suggests to me that they aren’t really sensitive to death at all, but are trying to hide their personal vacant characters behind the deaths of a few innocents.

The storm is a chance for them to project the lie that they are good people via their concerns for life.

Actually the storm is showing obama’s lack
of concern in my opinion. Red Cross is stuck on stupid, FEMA is handing out cards to buy stuff that isn’t there, yet Mitt Romney’s donated food was a help. Obama, state and local government is failing the people big time. Obama is too busy campaigning right now.

Biden’s gift for reading people played a role in the endorsement. He and Bloomberg have been friendly for years, and have played golf together. The V.P. had called the mayor over the weekend, and the had talked several times this week about Sandy. Then yesterday morning, Biden was in Davenport, Iowa, about to go to church for All Saints’ Day. Finally, he made the ask, nudging Bloomberg toward the endorsement: “Mike, there’s too much at stake. We really need you to do this.” And the mayor did. http://weaselzippers.us/

About 2,500 people waited up to 90 minutes to get into the rally, with hundreds more in an outside holding area.

We’ll see if these numbers turn into winning numbers of votes. Romney is drawing big crowds, though. I think we’ll win Wisconsin. Had Scott Walker lost, I would put Wisconsin out of reach, but Walker won. Kleefisch won. We won the Senate re-call elections (except for one), and the Supreme Court election. I think Wisconsin will fall to Romney next Tuesday, and with it the Presidency. Polls show it tied, and I think most of the ties will go to the challenger. People who are undecided at this stage will either vote for Romney or they will stay home. They’ve already decided against Obama.

IF this is something the media is most certainly burying…obama is not, repeat not drawing big crowds…Romney is drawing huge crowds. The media were all over the amount of people obama was drawing in 2008….they aren’t mentioning anything about the crowds obama is drawing this election cycle…because it would look bad.

@ MacDuff:
I hear you…I am usually pretty ambivalent toward pols and elections…but this time I feel my sensibilities are being insulted…I can tolerate a lot of bullshit but BO has taxed me dry…I really despise this asshole…he’s not just ideologically wrong, he’s aggressively malicious about it

It’s not just about politics, it’s a lot scarier than Republican/Democrat/Conservative/liberal policy differences. Obama said he wanted to “fundamentally change America” – that was unacceptable in 2008 and it’s even more unacceptable now that we’ve gotten a good picture of what that change looks like.

They are doing it with fraud and why in the hell do continue to beat the drums for obama when you don’t have to live in this country?
/I honestly do not expect an answer and if you say George Bush ..he isn’t on the ballot this year.

@ ferb123:
It is all in who shows up at the polls. It really does matter who votes and who they vote for. That is why I keep stressing the importance of enthusiasm. You point out that Rasmussen has Obama up by five, but you don’t really know what that means. 3%margin of error means he could be up as little as 2 points in real voting, and you can make up two points in get out the vote efforts. So PA is still very doable. Romney obviously feels it is, because he is campaigning there Sunday.

@ ferb123:
They are doing it with fraud and why in the hell do continue to beat the drums for obama when you don’t have to live in this country?
/I honestly do not expect an answer and if you say George Bush ..he isn’t on the ballot this year.

ok you catch me. I want Obama to win because I like to see Ann Coulter mocking Obama for 4 more years
XDDDDDDDDD

and why in the hell do continue to beat the drums for obama when you don’t have to live in this country?

Oh c’mmon, he is so incredible brave to fight for a politician in a far away country in the internet instead of going out at home and fight for – hmmm – a leftwing politician from Turkish or Arab descent in Germany. I gues wants be looked at as European “intellectual”

and why in the hell do continue to beat the drums for obama when you don’t have to live in this country?

Oh c’mmon, he is so incredible brave to fight for a politician in a far away country in the internet instead of going out at home and fight for — hmmm — a leftwing politician from Turkish or Arab descent in Germany. I gues wants be looked at as European “intellectual”

@ Guggi:
He doesn’t look very intellectual. He doesn’t even understand basic statistics. Oh, and from what I’ve heard, Rasmussen is using a D+3 sample. Gallup is expecting actual turnout to be R+1 or R+0. Either one makes most of the statistical models invalid.

I just don’t understand anyone who could support obama and the demoncraps. There is something wrong with them.

I honestly don’t understand it either …. but we will see in just a few days how this country will swing.

The 2012 Choice

This election will tell us what kind of America we believe in. Is it the one our Founders bequeathed to their posterity of limited government, or is it the one re-made in the image of liberal paternalistic government?

The choice, as President Obama has said, could not be clearer. Is our country a giant ATM, dispensing money and benefits to increasing numbers of people while requiring little, if anything, of the recipients? Or, is America a land of opportunity where people can rise as far as their skills and desire to work will take them, with a safety net for those who need it?

We have become a debtor nation with too many of our fellow citizens believing the productive “owe” them just for being alive. Debt shackles individuals and nations. Benjamin Franklin said: “Think what you do when you run in debt; you give to another power over your liberty.”

Government under President Obama has reduced our liberty by expanding its power over us (think Obamacare) and deepening our debt. There is no indication things will get better if he wins a second term; quite the opposite.

In its endorsement of Mitt Romney, the influential Des Moines Register got to the heart of the matter. It noted, “…the single most important challenge” for the next president will be “…pulling the economy out of the doldrums, getting more Americans back in the workforce in meaningful jobs with promising futures, and getting the federal government on a track to balance the budget in a bipartisan manner that the country demands.”

With just a few days left until the election, the left’s out-of-control fringe has taken control – blaming Mitt Romney for deadly meningitis or even warning that his presidency will lead to the slow killing of gays. And when they aren’t doing that, they are calling, well, somewhat tongue in cheek, for a complete halt to sex with Republicans.

Maybe it is true about someone putting drugs in Halloween candy.

This close to Election Day, it’s getting harder to rank the liberal arguments on a scale of 1-10 (1 being sane and 10 being bonkers.) Perhaps they need the speakers from “Spinal Tap” to measure their level of lunacy.

At the top of the list is blaming Romney for a meningitis outbreak based on something he didn’t do. Let’s say 10.5 on the scale. Salon.writer Craig Unger pinned the recent spike in meningitis, which resulted in the deaths of 29 people, on Romney.

Unger used one of the oldest and lamest campaign tricks. Find a lawyer to make some wacky accusation and then write about it. As it turns out, Unger was complaining about a recent problem that happened in 2012 and Romney hasn’t even been governor since 2007.

But if Romney wasn’t killing meningitis victims, then he must be planning to kill gays. That’s according to Sirius XM “Out Q 108″ radio host and gay-left activist Michelangelo Signorile. He told one gay, pro-Romney caller that he should buy some arsenic to commit suicide, since it would be less awful than the “slow painful death” President Romney would apparently administer if he became the next inhabitant of the Oval Office.

@ ferb123:
It is all in who shows up at the polls. It really does matter who votes and who they vote for. That is why I keep stressing the importance of enthusiasm. You point out that Rasmussen has Obama up by five, but you don’t really know what that means. 3%margin of error means he could be up as little as 2 points in real voting, and you can make up two points in get out the vote efforts. So PA is still very doable. Romney obviously feels it is, because he is campaigning there Sunday.

I am not that bad in statistic
I think the main problems of all these polls is not the statical error but the systematic errors.

Iron Fist wrote:
@ ferb123:
It is all in who shows up at the polls. It really does matter who votes and who they vote for. That is why I keep stressing the importance of enthusiasm. You point out that Rasmussen has Obama up by five, but you don’t really know what that means. 3%margin of error means he could be up as little as 2 points in real voting, and you can make up two points in get out the vote efforts. So PA is still very doable. Romney obviously feels it is, because he is campaigning there Sunday.

I am not that bad in statistic
I think the main problems of all these polls is not the statical error but the systematic errors.

‘Sons of Anarchy’ star: Storm aftermath ‘a lot worse than how it’s being portrayed by media’

EW spoke to

Sons of Anarchy – and Staten Island native — Theo Rossi (Juice Ortiz), who was home visiting family and friends when Sandy hit. He’s remained there ever since and gave us this first-hand account of the devastation.

“It’s so bad here, a lot worse than how its being portrayed by the media. They are finding bodies left and right, elderly people who don’t even watch the news or who knew the storm was coming. I was just with one of my best friends from high school and college, and his house is completely gone. One story I heard was about this one guy who evacuated his house during Hurricane Irene but then it got looted. So when they told him to evacuate for Sandy, he said, ‘I’m not leaving.’ Now they can’t find him, his 13-year-old daughter is dead, and his wife is in critical condition at the hospital. These are the stories. My stepfather and my mother, I love them to death. But when they heard the storm was coming, they said, ‘It’s not going to be that bad. Irene didn’t do anything.’ They had two flashlights and a couple of scented candles. Little did they know. It’s just not worth it. If you’re told to evacuate, you need to get out.

The one weird thing is how there is no power. The other weird thing is how there’s no gas. To get gas requires a three-and-a-half hour wait. It’s like this odd, post-apocalyptic kind of thing. Most trees are down. Power lines are down. It’s like a movie, or like The Walking Dead. You can’t believe it. Especially when you grow up here. I moved to Los Angeles in 1999, but this has always been my home. There’s the place I kissed a girl, that’s the place I played handball. I know this island in and out. To see it completely destroyed is bizarre

@ ferb123:
non too soon, people are going to quit caring what you think…if you are a german which I doubt, then you are a piss poor representative of your country…these folks here give you well thought out responses and rather than thank them for the effort you continue your game of fraud, bullshit and ill manners…are all krauts as rude as you are?…are they all as stupid as you try to be?…no wonder you are up to your knees in your own shit…after all Americans have done to help you worthless fascists out you come to this little out of the way blog of friendly people and spit on us?….fuck you adolf

Report: Biden Pressured Bloomberg To Endorse Obama, “Mike, There’s Too Much At Stake. We Really Need You To Do This”…

Biden’s gift for reading people played a role in the endorsement. He and Bloomberg have been friendly for years, and have played golf together. The V.P. had called the mayor over the weekend, and the had talked several times this week about Sandy. Then yesterday morning, Biden was in Davenport, Iowa, about to go to church for All Saints’ Day. Finally, he made the ask, nudging Bloomberg toward the endorsement: “Mike, there’s too much at stake. We really need you to do this.” And the mayor did

This is like child abuse. I hope the kid can rise about the absolute morons that are apparently raising him. But of course Mitt makes a statement about China and the MSM is all over it – but remains silent regarding the venom emanating from the Obummer/Plugs camp.

@ heysoos:
Registration is never open at Hot Air. And if it went to Ace, the morons over there would turn it into hamburger on the first thread.

he’s here only because you guys are nice to him, the way it should be…but he abused his vibe fucking around for attention….he thinks it’s just groovy that we are in financial straights and digs BO for putting us there

O/T: To answer Iron Fist’s question in the previous thread, Walker is putting his organization to use getting out the vote for R/R and T. Thompson for Senate. Those of us in WI 2nd Congressional District are getting little high-profile support against a D who has been in State Office since the early 1990s. The rest of the State may see Rs enter office, but, around Madison, the district will remain in D hands.

Oh, well — I still intend to vote. My voice will be heard at the ballot box on Tuesday.

Will they have jobs in the crop field? Since this country has not had any slavery for well over a hundred years, then I would think a farm job would be OK to have, especially if you are one of Obama’s typical black people living in an American Ghetto where unemployment for black males 18 to 30 is just about 60% or so. One more win for Romney! Another job opportunity in the private sector.

I saw that and it is beyond bizarre why would a 9 year-old be worried about who is elected president and more over, thinking he will become a slave! It is child-abuse and really I am just sick of the racist card being used; Biden—-ROMNEY WILL PUT YA’LL BACK IN CHAINS! Comment was over the top…these people are living in the past. It isn’t the 1800’s and it isn’t the 1960’s either. I’ll be glad, and really hope obama is voted out, so I don’t have to hear about this backward insanity anymore. Not to mention the stupid War on Women too. I’m disgusted by it all…but they never mention obama’s record is always some imaginary *outrage* they go on about.

I stepped in some ferb yesterday and had to scrub the ferb out of my oxfords with a wire brush, bleach and gasoline to get the smell out. Then I felt guilty about using the gasoline that way since the poor souls in New York and New Jersey are so low on gas and other supplies.

Stephen Greene wargaming the Electoral College. He comes to a similar conclusion I have, i.e. that Obama needs to win both Ohio and Wisconsin to win this thing. He has Pennsylvania leaning Obama, but that is in Obama’s must win collumn as well. It’s an interesting read. Romney has the momentum, though.

With this kind of a sweep, there’s even an outside chance of CT, MI, or OR coming along for a ride on the Red Express.

Likely? Hahahahahahahaha, no. But the Momentum Charts show that it is possible. They also show that Obama has, in just four years, pissed away every single gain he and his party had made in the wake of the Great Recession and the Republican meltdown. We’re fighting on his turf now.

Even if Obama wins next week, his legacy is one of great potential that was instantly squandered.

Mitt has the momentum, though. That much is clear. I’ll take anything that gets us over 270, though, and that looks likely. Ohio or Wisconsin will win it for us. Pennsylvania would, too. Obama has to hold all three to win. I don’t think he can do it.

Clint Eastwood: “I find myself being very resentful about this whole thing in Benghazi. That’s been kind of a tragedy that should have never happened. Or there should have been an attempt. All that you can ask is when there is a crisis like that is to make an attempt. That is the American way.”

@ ferb123:
non too soon, people are going to quit caring what you think…if you are a german which I doubt, then you are a piss poor representative of your country…these folks here give you well thought out responses and rather than thank them for the effort you continue your game of fraud, bullshit and ill manners…are all krauts as rude as you are?…are they all as stupid as you try to be?…no wonder you are up to your knees in your own shit…after all Americans have done to help you worthless fascists out you come to this little out of the way blog of friendly people and spit on us?….fuck you adolf

wel, the only one who answer in a friendly way is actually Iron Fist. I do not agree with him but he stays friendly. Most of you here react like you, somehow typically republican XDDD

heysoos wrote:
@ ferb123:
non too soon, people are going to quit caring what you think…if you are a german which I doubt, then you are a piss poor representative of your country…these folks here give you well thought out responses and rather than thank them for the effort you continue your game of fraud, bullshit and ill manners…are all krauts as rude as you are?…are they all as stupid as you try to be?…no wonder you are up to your knees in your own shit…after all Americans have done to help you worthless fascists out you come to this little out of the way blog of friendly people and spit on us?….fuck you adolf

wel, the only one who answer in a friendly way is actually Iron Fist. I do not agree with him but he stays friendly. Most of you here react like you, somehow typically republican XDDD

and you are an idiot…you don’t count, it’s not gonna turn for you if you decide to bug me….fuck off

A lot of out-of-town people will be coming in and the hotels are filled to capacity because of people having no homes to go to. So the hotels don’t want to throw out people who don’t have anywhere to go for someone coming to run the Marathon from out-of-town..not to mention with gas in short supply they are using generators and gas that could be used in damaged areas.

They’ve decided to Cancel the marathon in New York. You have to wonder why it took so long…

Bloomberg is doing an Obozo “leading from behind” announcement. These elitists are so removed from normal human behavior, that they require a giant cluebat in order to act with a degree of real concern. Why would gas be a problem? You just get in the back of the limo and wait for it to take you where you want to go. /

Bloomturd is dumber than a box of rocks. The only individuals I know who come close to him for being clueless are the guy who runs the swamp “Across the Street” and two grammatically/synapse challenged trolls.

I’m starting to worry about by my NYC boasting…they don’t seem to be as smart as I always thought…no food, water or blankets?…they had a week to figure it out….as for the entire storm story, my feelings are mixed…typically for every story of extreme stupidity, there is a story of extraordinary effort…my heart goes out to the victims…but with this, try real hard to not be dead weight

@ heysoos:
I’m starting to worry about by my NYC boasting…they don’t seem to be as smart as I always thought…no food, water or blankets?…
There are a lot of people whose homes were destroyed or severely damaged.
All the food and blankets in the world won’t do you much good if they’re under 6 feet of water.

I made that distinction earlier today….losing your home and everything in it a life changing trauma I’m sure…so pack for two…I just don’t get a vibe that they were as well prepared as they easily could have been, but I don’t want to sound too harsh either…this thing is a bitch and and I don’t want to seem decisive

“I had a friend who said, ‘You don’t just pick the winners and losers,’ ” Mitt Romney told President Obama in the first presidential debate. “You pick the losers.”

Romney’s assessment of the billions that Obama has wasted on green energies is dead on. And unfortunately, it only tells half of the story. According to a Washington Examiner analysis of publicly available data, corporate insiders at the 15 publicly traded green energy companies that received federal stimulus subsidies pocketed tens of millions by selling their stock after the government’s money poured in and before their companies’ values plummeted.

The Obama administration gave more than $700 million in grants and guaranteed an additional $500 million in loans to publicly traded green energy companies through its 2009 stimulus package. If Obama had invested all that money in a Standard & Poors index fund of the top 500 publicly traded companies, his investment would have seen a 73 percent return since he took office. In contrast, the Obama “green energy” stimulus portfolio has fallen by 78 percent — performing about five points worse than green energy companies that didn’t get subsidies.

The insider trades by officers and directors of these companies tell us still more. They cashed out a net $63.9 million in stock gains before their companies’ stock prices collapsed.

Biofuel manufacturer Amyris Inc., for example, was given $24.3 million in taxpayer money to turn plant sugars into diesel fuel. At one point, this helped push its stock price above $30 a share. Today, Amyris has closed two of its three plants, and its stock sells for less than $3. Amyris’ insiders got rich first, though, netting $21 million in stock sales after the firm went public in September 2010.

Solazyme, another biofuel manufacturer, received $21.8 million from Obama’s Energy Department. Its stock once traded at more than $25 a share but now is worth less than $9. Its corporate insiders realized $18.4 million in capital gains before the stock price collapsed.

Corporate insiders at A123 Systems were not as quick to cash out as their biofuel colleagues. The Massachusetts electric-car battery manufacturer received a $249 million grant from Obama’s Energy Department in 2009, before going bankrupt last month. Its stock was worth more than $25 a share when it first went public in September 2009. A123 officers and directors still made more than $11 million in stock sales.

This analysis does not include some of the best-known Obama energy failures. Solyndra, for example, blew through more than $500 million in taxpayer-guaranteed loans before it could even go public. Another high-profile failure, First Solar, is not included because it sold off much of its $3 billion in federal loan guarantees to third parties before it laid off 30 percent of its workforce and its stock price declined by more than 90 percent from its 2011 high. The company’s head, Michael Ahearn, has extracted more than $329 million in stock sales since 2009 all by himself.

Buckeye Abroad wrote:
ferb123 wrote:
Its common all over the world
Though many Germans belive that, it isn’t. In fact, Anglophiles find your humor odd and we actually lampoon it.
you deny you would feel Schadensfreude for democrats if Obama loses?

I never considered a political election in terms how it would make me “feel”. Do you?
I do know that Obama and the democrat party have been an absolute train wreck for my country and giving him another term would make it worse.

So you really not feel Schadensfreude for all these socialist/progressive Obama supporter?
O come on, are you human?

Ayup. This isn’t a game. It’s a contest to the death – the potential death of the federal republic we grew up in. It’s been a very long battle, starting before most of us were born. And it now appears to be at the end game. Of course, everyone always thinks they’re seeing the end game, but we may actually be doing so. If that’s the case, it may get very ugly indeed. I hope not. I’m sure Jefferson, Madison, Adams and Washington had hoped their pleas would be heeded, too. But they weren’t, so they did what was necessary.

So you really not feel Schadensfreude for all these socialist/progressive Obama supporter?
O come on, are you human?

This isn’t one of your soccer games. This is the future of our country.

The only thing I feel for any of those people is contempt.

Apparently the ferb doesn’t understand excatly how serious this is. He seems to think it some form of amusement. It’s not..and there are a lot of Americans that do not find this amusing in the least bit. It’s our future and which way our country will go. It is very serious and I find it belittling by the likes of ferb who thinks it’s entertainment.

Rearding ferb..if you haven’t noticed–he enjoys your reactions. Thats his kick and the reason he is here. Schadenfreude. He is causing discomfort and enjoys your pained responses. Content is irrelevant– he wouldn’t comprehend your anguish depspite your best efforts. It’s a german thing.

Apparently the ferb doesn’t understand excatly how serious this is. He seems to think it some form of amusement. It’s not..and there are a lot of Americans that do not find this amusing in the least bit. It’s our future and which way our country will go. It is very serious and I find it belittling by the likes of ferb who thinks it’s entertainment.

Not much really changes in most European countries, no matter who gets elected. The EU is the real power there, and they have no say over its decisions.

@ ferb123:
So you really not feel Schadensfreude for all these socialist/progressive Obama supporter?
Es tut mir sehr leid für sie, aber das it alles. / I feel sorry for them, but that’s it. Ich habe keine personliche Blutrache. / I have no personal vendetta.
O come on, are you human?
Wie alt bist du eigentlich? / How old are you actually?

I have the impression that for some of your rupublican fellows it is more important that Obama fail than America succeed. Totally stupid, but there are such people in your country. I would called this Schadensfreude.
And yes again, I think Obama is better for US(even US economy) than Romney.

@ ferb123:
So you really not feel Schadensfreude for all these socialist/progressive Obama supporter?
O come on, are you human?
This isn’t one of your soccer games. This is the future of our country.
The only thing I feel for any of those people is contempt.

Apparently the ferb doesn’t understand excatly how serious this is. He seems to think it some form of amusement. It’s not..and there are a lot of Americans that do not find this amusing in the least bit. It’s our future and which way our country will go. It is very serious and I find it belittling by the likes of ferb who thinks it’s entertainment.

at the same time you find it amusing and entertaining bashing your president and everybody supporting him

at the same time you find it amusing and entertaining bashing your president and everybody supporting him

There is a reason that Piefkes (Germans) are not much liked in the world – beside by Arabas who cheer you for Nationalsozialism and the Shoa – and you are a typical example of a Piefke: a big mouth, know-it-alls, arrogance and no manners.

You think we are impressed with your performance, really ? You think you are a “hero” because you try to stir sh*t on this blog ? Your answers to serious questions are infantile and everybody can see your childish and stupid behavior. You don’t make a good figure here because you look more like a little boy in his puberty.

at the same time you find it amusing and entertaining bashing your president and everybody supporting him

I find it amusing?? No I do not. I wish he were a better president ..he isn’t. He doesn’t care about Americans like he should.
Not to mention I find you rather boorish. Here you are at the end of the thread insulting me.

I have the impression that for some of your rupublican fellows it is more important that Obama fail than America succeed.

Though I actually don’t care what your impressions are nor your opinions, Obamas admininstration has been an epic failure and the results are there for all to see. No maliciousness needed. Obama has done all the work for the opposition. He is intellecutally and morally bankrupt and has nothing to offer and the American people know it.

Totally stupid, but there are such people in your country.

Insults? Your insecurity is showing. No worries. I’ve been amongst your kind for a very long time. It’s a german thing.

And yes again, I think Obama is better for US(even US economy) than Romney.

Based on what? The facts are he has made things worse, but I am certain your opinion aren’t based on them anyway. Europeans never had Americas best interests at heart, so you don’t have to answer that.